Start reading the preview of my book A Doctor's Journey for free on Amazon. Available on Kindle for $2.99!
Good-bye 2010, Welcome 2011
The year 2010 was not good. We were blasted by earthquakes, heat waves, floods, volcanoes, typhoons, blizzards, landslides and drought.
What was the toll on human lives?
According to Associated Press, nearly 260,000 people died. The year 2010 was the deadliest year in more than a generation. More people were killed worldwide by natural disasters in than have been killed in terrorism attacks in the past 40 years combined.
What was the toll on our economies?
Natural disasters in 2010 caused $222-billion (U.S.) in economic losses. The reason it was not higher because some of these disasters hit poor countries like Haiti. These areas are without heavy insurance.
According to experts, this is a classic sign of man-made global warming. Mother Nature is just doing its thing – reacting to the damage we have done to our environment. These statistics do not take into account the collateral damage to mental and physical health of the people who survived these disasters.
The current world population has reached 6.8 billion. Population in the world is currently growing at a rate of around 1.15 per cent per year. The average annual population change is currently estimated at over 77 million. If you visit http://www.worldometers.info/population/ you will find out everything you need to know about the growth of human population on this planet.
In spite of all the disasters we talked about, life goes on for most people. So do not give up hope.
Look at the amount of money spent in the month of December to celebrate Christmas and New Year all over the world. Probably billions of dollars were infused into the economies of the world thus helping people continue to work and make a living.
About one million people were in Times Square in New York on New Year’s eve with champagne bottles spreading bubbles of cheer and hope all over the place. I was in Las Vegas with my family where half-a-million people jammed the Strip to watch the fireworks at midnight. The cost of fireworks was estimated to be U.S. $ 500,000.
Wow, that is some kind of money to blow it away in smoke. But, the idea was to make people happy and give them hope for the future.
While I was waiting at the Las Vegas airport for my flight, I picked a magazine to see if there is life after 2010. The magazine was Men’s Fitness with Ashton Kutcher on the cover showing off his biceps. The exclusive article about him is titled, “Ashton Kutcher fights back!” It is not about his wife, it is about his exercise program.
Some of the articles in the magazine gave me hope that future should be good. One article is titled, “Build Muscle Burn Fat All Year Long!” Wow, I should be able to lose 52 lbs in one year if I follow the exercise and diet program they recommend.
And there is an article called, “Her Secrets for Better Sex!” I wondered whether this was about losing weight or building muscles while having sex. So I went to that article first. It was neither. It was a survey “to discern just how couples are handling the invasion of gizmos in the bedroom.”
Here is some info from the survey: 39 per cent women would rather give up sex for a year than part with their cell phones, 70 per cent of women have “sexted” with their lover, 80 per cent of women agree that technology creates intimacy faster and there is more but we will leave that for another time. One article is titled, “Balls.” It is about the Chicago Blackhawks star Patrick Kane. Does this give you hope for 2011?
Anyway, let us start the New Year with the hope that there be good health, peace and happiness all over the world. And we should all do something about it.
Start reading the preview of my book A Doctor's Journey for free on Amazon. Available on Kindle for $2.99!
What is new for the New Year?
For the last 13 years, I have been writing this column, I find it very difficult to write the last column of the year. Do I write about the year gone by or about the year to come? Should I write about good things or bad things? Should I make it light hearted or serious? Then I ask myself, “Does anybody really care what I write at this time of the year?”
My mind is never empty. It is always constructing opening and closing paragraphs of my future articles. The buzz in my head goes on for days until I sit down and start writing. But, sometimes I do get mental block or writer’s cramp. But I don’t think I get a swollen head.
This reminds me of a quote by Coulson Kernahan (1858–1943), an English novelist, “There are two literary maladies – writer’s cramp and swollen head. The worst of writer’s cramp is that it is never cured; the worst of swollen head is that it never kills.” I think I am safe.
This brings me back to the title of the column, “What is new for the New Year?”
It is the same old, same old.
This includes the tradition of making New Year’s resolutions. These resolutions are almost always the same. Mine do not change from year to year. One resolution never goes away is my prayer, “Oh God, take away 20 lbs from my girth so I can fit into my pants.” The prayer never gets answered and my resolution stays on the board for the next year.
Studies have shown that people understand their health risks but do not necessarily change their lifestyle. Surveys have shown that 57 per cent of people are not motivated to stay healthy. Don’t they care? Thirty four per cent of people have no time and 30 per cent have financial barriers to pursue a healthy life style.
Here are five resolutions I would be interested in:
1. Move to an island where I can find Robinson Crusoe and Friday. I would like to know where “No man is an island” is. Is it in Bow Island? I would like to spend more time with my family and friends if Friday does not mind.
2. I would like to be 18 again. Fit and healthy. Run 10 km a day and pump iron every day. I would like to look like Charles Atlas (does anybody remember him?) or Arnold Schwarzenegger. It would be cool just to know how to spell Arnold’s last name. That, in itself, would be lot of heavy lifting. I would like to have sexy accent like his – then I can run for an elected office against Sarah Palin. But I am a Canadian and that will never happen. Dang!
3. Tame the bulge so I can get into my pants and keep my cardiologist happy. And I don’t get my shoes wet. Why is this so difficult? It is not like taming a lion or Elizabeth Taylor. Some say it is the gluttony. Shame on me. I will see if Santa can fulfill my wish this Christmas – Santa, get me some will power. Not a drill dummy, I said “will power.” Ok Santa, the “drill” should help my bulge. Right?
4. I don’t need to quit smoking because I…do… not… smoke! Ah, that is smart or what? If you are a smoker, better quit before you turn into ashes. Right now your dollars are burning. Then your lungs will go black…ok…ok…I will stop now before you throw up.
5. Do not drink and drive. Drinking and driving is not funny. You are not only putting yourself in danger but you are putting lot of innocent people in danger. Chronic drinking hurts your family and friends. Quite likely, chronic drinking will make you a lonely person and in the long run, perhaps a street person or a number in jail.
So, be smart. Have a safe and happy New Year!
Start reading the preview of my book A Doctor's Journey for free on Amazon. Available on Kindle for $2.99!
If you are stupid, then start smoking.
Not what we have, but what we use;
Not what we see, but what we choose;
These are the things that mar or bless
the sum of human happiness.
-Joseph Fort Newton
Christmas is a time for good news and happiness. It is about love and family and a few days of holidays. We want to forget about the realities of life. It is time to eat, drink and be merry – hopefully within safe limits.
But if you look at the news on a daily basis, there isn’t much to cheer about. Everyday people are getting sick or dying. Sometimes it is our own fault that we get sick. Sometimes we are struck by lightning – so to speak. Just pure bad luck.
One example of self-inflicted illness is caused by smoking. Just a few days ago it was reported that Alberta’s former premier – Ralph Klein – is suffering from emphysema and loss of memory.
The media report says, “Ralph is 68 now and smokes. He’s been smoking since his days as a young teen from a broken home on the mean streets of Tuxedo Park and we’re talking real smoking. As premier, Ralph was going to try and quit on one of those weedless days or weedless weeks proclaimed by the anti-cigarette crowd. It’s years ago now.”
Well, I remember that day when he declared he wanted to quit smoking because I wrote a column about it in January 2004. He said his grandchildren want him to give up the bad habit.
Before that, on August 25, 2003, the Medicine Hat News published a letter I had sent under the heading, “Ten reasons for Klein to butt out.” I had written in response to Klein’s publicised argument that smoking was a lesser evil than drinking. I believe this was after he had stopped drinking.
Now Klein’s advice to the public is, “If you are stupid, then start smoking.”
Klein is a very respected and successful politician. This reputation was achieved because he did what he said he would – in politics. And I thought for the sake of his grandchildren he would quit smoking. But in personal life things are not always that easy.
Nicotine is an addictive drug. It causes dependence and tolerance. Once you are hooked on it, it takes control of your mind and body. There is craving for more and more nicotine.
If you try to deprive your mind and body of nicotine then you get very unpleasant withdrawal symptoms. These are: irritability, anger, impatience, restlessness, difficulty concentrating, insomnia, increased appetite, anxiety and depression.
Smoking is also habit forming. It becomes part of our routine – cigarette on waking up, cigarette after a meal, cigarette with a drink, cigarette with coffee, cigarette before a bowel movement, cigarette after sex (remember Austin Power joke – do you smoke after sex? Get the pun?), cigarette to relieve stress and so on.
One can successfully quit smoking. You need three things: motivation, counseling and nicotine replacement therapy. As a caring society, we can only create awareness and support system to help people quit smoking. But in the end, the success or the failure depends on personal motivation.
Studies have shown that self-motivation, counseling and nicotine replacement therapy achieves the highest rate of success, 40-60 percent in the initial phase and about 30 percent at the end of one year.
Be smart and be healthy. Do not smoke. We wish Mr. Klein good health and happiness.
Merry Christmas to you all.
Start reading the preview of my book A Doctor's Journey for free on Amazon. Available on Kindle for $2.99!